Innocent
by hazelblye
Summary: Olivia Pope is a first year law school student and her professor is none other than Fitzgerald Grant. This story was inspired by the preview for "How To Get Away With Murder" and also by the Innocence Project aspect of "The Divide".
1. Chapter 1

_What is the point of being alive if you don't at least try to do something remarkable? _

_- John Green, An Abundance of Katherines_

* * *

It is my first day of class on my first day as a first year law student. I'm nervous, ecstatic, nauseous, antsy, and so many things in between. I am one of the first people in the classroom this morning. I left Abby at our apartment because she was lagging and I had too many feelings swirling around my head and just had to get to class as soon as I could.

Students are slowly filing in and I can't help but people watch as they all enter. I've heard this is one of the hardest classes we'll take and not because its particularly difficult material, but because it's designed to weed out anyone who can't hack it.

It's about five minutes to 8:00 when Abby finds me and plops down next to me.

"Hey Liv, see I told you I'd make it on time." She teases.

I roll my eyes at her and don't respond as I continue to assesses our classmates.

"So apparently Professor Grant is really attractive."

I laugh, "Seriously? That's what you're focused on? This class could make or break us and _that_ is all you're thinking about?"

Abby shrugs, and suddenly a man walks down the aisle and to the front of the classroom.

I don't get a good glimpse at his face but I can see that he's wearing a dark grey suit, pale blue pinstripe shirt, and a navy blue tie. He sets a briefcase on the desk and he turns around.

I accidentally let out an audible gasp—though thankfully it seems like I'm not the only one—but I can't help it because this is the first good look I've gotten at his face and boy, he is gorgeous. He has a strong jaw and a deliciously crooked smile, his blue-grey eyes glimmer against his suit and he has gorgeous light brown, curly hair that is perfectly styled on his head so the front curl sits perfectly on top of his head like he's some old Hollywood star.

He starts to speak and I find myself mesmerized by his voice.

"I am Fitzgerald Grant and I am your Criminal Law Professor for this semester or as I like to call it," he turns around to write something on the chalkboard, "How To Get Away With Murder."

We are all silent and stunned for a moment while Professor Grant scopes us out, a knowing smile on his face.

"I teach this one class at Georgetown but 90% of my time is dedicated to my other job as an equity partner at Cabot, Rabb, & Hotchner. I'm about to give you the biggest assignment of the semester. Your assignment is come up with a defense for the case I'm going to hand out. The students who present me the four best defenses will get internship positions at my law firm. Believe me, you want this internship."

He starts to hand out the case file to the students in the front row so they can pass it back. "I don't know what you've heard about me but I can assure you that I have been a practicing attorney for over ten years and I can see through every ounce of bullshit you throw at me. Do not try to suck up, do not try to get on my good side—I don't have one—unless you have the raw talent to get everything I ask of you done then don't waste your breath because it only gets harder from here."

He's been handing out the papers as he's been talking and when he gets to me, as he hands me the stack of papers, our fingers touch and I feel a jolt of electricity.

My eyes open wide as I glance up at him and I see that he's staring at me with a confused look on his face. He just continues to stare at me for a moment and then abruptly averts his eyes.

He moves on down the row and Abby grabs her stack and passes them back and then gives me a knowing look.

Thankfully Professor Grant starts to speak before Abby can say anything to me. "I have a code I use in my law practice, I call this code my moral precepts. There are four of them. I will tell you what they are but it's up to you to figure out why they are so important. Memorize them, know them, and use them."

He turns around the board and starts writing once again. "Number one: A quote from Malcolm X, 'I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it is for or against.' Number two: 'Never, ever screw with someone just because you can.' Number three: A quote from the genius of Lou Reed, 'It takes a busload of faith to get by'. And number four: 'Never be satisfied until justice has been served.' Figure out what these mean, you'll need them if you want to impress me even slightly."

He finishes writing and he turns back around to face us. "Yes, I am a defense attorney and there are many who say defense attorneys are the lowest of the low and if you think that, fine. But defense attorneys are necessary to the justice system. In order for our justice system to work we owe every single person the right to the absolute best defense they can get. I am damn good at my job, that's not bragging; that's just fact, and I put my faith in our justice system. It's not always easy but I do it day after day because I believe in the American justice system, obviously it has its flaws but the core of our justice system, 'Innocent until proven guilty', is what gets me out of bed in the morning. I'm not looking for lawyers, I'm looking for gladiators in suits."

When he says 'gladiators' he looks directly at me and I can feel my breath hitch in my throat.

"Class dismissed."

Everyone gets up and files out of the classroom but I can't seem to move. I'm sitting there staring at the case file in front of me because I'm a little afraid to look up at Professor Grant.

I'm knocked out of my stupor by Abby who grabs my arm and shakes me slightly, "Liv, come on we've got business law in a half hour and I need a coffee."

I nod my head and I gather my things and walk up and out of the classroom behind Abby. I tell myself not to look back but I can't help it and just as we are about to walk out of the classroom I turn and look at Professor Grant. He's still staring at me and I don't know why but I give him a small smile as I walk out of the room and to my great joy he reciprocates and oh my—his smile is gorgeous. I follow Abby into the hallway and I'm grateful she's going on about something and doesn't notice how flush my face is.

Abby and I have all our classes together which was a welcome surprise. We met our very first day at Stanford and we have been best friends ever since.

I'm grateful that we were smart and paid a little extra money to move into our apartment a week early because we have already been bombarded with homework.

Tuesday night feels like the first time we are able to sit down and actually have a breather.

We open a bottle of wine and we mindlessly scan through LexusNexus for case law on our laptops.

Abby looks up at me, "So I totally forgot about this until now, but what happened when Grant passed you that case file? You both looked kind of shocked."

I shake my head, "It was nothing. It was a shock, static electricity or something."

Abby scoffs, "I don't think that's the kind of shock it was."

I roll my eyes at her, "Oh come on, he's our professor can we please just drop this?"

Abby laughs, "I'm just trying to get you some action Liv!"

I shake my head at her but even so I can't help but laugh, "Oh Abs, you are a good friend."

"Look Liv, we're in law school now. I'm very proud of you for holding onto your v-card through undergrad but I have to say this is the perfect opportunity to cash it in. I mean think about it, you get experience and then when we graduate you get a job at a top law firm, meet a hot older lawyer, and boom! That's when life gets good."

I laugh at her as I continue to scan through LexusNexus for case law.

"I don't know. I think I've kind of psyched myself out. You know, like I've waited so long and built it up so much in my head that I'm worried it's not going to be at all like I imagined."

Abby laughs "If you're with a guy who knows what to do your first time will be just fine, don't worry about it. I mean, would you actually wait until marriage?"

"No!" I exclaim, "Absolutely not! I'm even more scared that if I wait that long then I'll do it and it will be terrible and I'll be stuck with that guy for my entire life. I'm just…I'm waiting for the right guy."

"What about Professor Grant?"

I roll my eyes, "I thought we were dropping this? He's a Professor, I'm his student, that would be so inappropriate."

"Yeah, inappropriate and _hot_!" Abby shrieks.

"Abby, it's not happening. Drop it."

She raises her hands in defeat. "Whatever you say Liv."

Thankfully she does drop the subject and we talk about our classes and the boys Abby finds attractive and after a little while we call it a night.

Wednesday morning rolls around and I'm ready for Professor Grant's class. He walks in the room and doesn't waste any time jumping right into work mode.

"I hope all of your are working on your defenses, I'll be expecting them next Wednesday. And since I talked most of Monday I want to hear what you have to say. You've had a couple days to think about my moral precepts and I want to know what you think they mean. Anyone?" He asks, glancing around the room.

I look around the room and I can tell that everyone is afraid to talk and without even realizing what I'm doing, I raise my hand.

He smiles and nods to me. "Would you like to start with just one or would you like to take a stab at all four?"

"All four." I say, with a confidence in my voice I didn't know I possessed.

"By all means, go for it."

I take a deep breath. "Well, the first one, 'I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it is for or against.' That I think is pretty obvious; in order for the criminal justice system to work you have to want justice above all else. You have to be willing to help those people who maybe can't or won't help themselves. You have to look at a bad situation and see that despite bad circumstances everyone is a person, everyone deserves to be treated with the level of respect all human beings are owed."

I pause for a moment and try to read Professor Grant's face but I cannot so I just keep talking.

"Number two, 'never screw with someone just because you can'. That one means that you should never withhold or set restraints just for the sake of basking in your own power and control. You can't abuse the powers you have been granted. You can't do things solely because of personal vendettas or want for power, you should maintain respect for the lives you are dealing with even when they are criminals."

This time I just continue talking, "Number three, 'It takes a busload of faith to get by.' This one isn't about faith in a religious sense, but about belief in something else that is un-seeable, untouchable, un-hearable, and that something is justice. You have to be able to go to work and believe that if you do your job correctly you are doing the right thing. Doing your duty the way you are instructed to do it, without need for recognition or the need for always-positive results. And number four; 'never be satisfied until justice has been served'. Well that one is easy, if you can do the first three then the fourth will prevail. If we can manage to seek justice no matter what the circumstances, to resist abusing the powers we have been grated, to believe in what we are doing whole-heartedly, then justice will prevail and we will have done our jobs."

I stop talking and Professor Grant is just staring at me. Finally, after what seems like ages he smiles, "That was brilliantly put. What's your name?"

"Olivia." I say boldly. "Pope."

He smiles, "Well Miss Pope, I appreciate your insight as I'm sure your fellow students do as well."

He spends the rest of the class discussing the syllabus and explaining a little more about the internship positions he's offering at our firm and class is over.

We make it through the morning and we meet up in a campus coffeehouse with several kids from class we have agreed to form a study group with.

We aren't studying right now, instead we are getting to know each other and just having a good time when all of a sudden Abby exclaims loudly, "Oh my god we got our advisor assignments!" And with that everyone turns to their computers to open their e-mails to see what advisor's they got paired with.

Abby announced she got Professor Langan and she's not too happy about it. Apparently he's not very helpful. Will and Quinn have Keller as well and they are all whining about it.

Harrison and Emily have Professor Mackenzie and they seem pretty happy about it, which makes sense because from her class yesterday she seems like she's going to be a good professor.

And Jake and Huck have Professor Roberts; I don't have him for any classes so I don't really know anything about him.

That's when Quinn turns to me and asks, "Olivia, who is your advisor?"

I haven't even opened the e-mail yet, "Um", I open it and scan down to find the name. "I have Professor Grant."

Abby whips her head around to me, her amber hair glowing even in the dim library light. "You got Grant? Lucky bitch!"

"I have Grant too." David chimes in, smiling at me from across the table.

I smile back at him and then Harrison speaks up. "You guys are lucky. I heard that Grant rarely takes advisees, and it's even more rare that they are first years. Apparently he only takes them as first years if he sees a lot of potential in them."

I can feel my cheeks turning flush and Abby laughs, "Well he certainly chose right, if any one of us is going to make it through it's going to be Liv. She was valedictorian of our class at Stanford, President of our Innocence Aid Chapter, practically got a perfect score on her LSAT, not to mention her slew of other extra-curricular activities."

"Abby," I hiss, I hate it when she brags for me. It's so awkward.

She rolls her eyes, "Oh get over it Liv, everyone's going to find out you're a genius sooner or later, apparently Professor Grant is ahead of the curve. You know what else he might be able to help you with? Getting laid!"

I smack her lightly on the arm and shake my head at her, "Abby don't be ridiculous, Professor Grant hardly seems like the type to sleep with students and I am definitely not the type to sleep with a professor."

Abby rolls her eyes at me, "Or anyone for that matter."

My eyes grow wide but thankfully no one seemed to hear her divulge my deep dark secret as they are all engrossed in their own conversations.

I look down at my watch and realize I need to leave. I stand up and start to gather my things, "I have to get going. I've got a phone call with my Dad soon."

Abby gives me a look of pity, "Good luck sweetie, don't let him ruin this for you."

I smile at her, "I won't. Thanks Abs."

I hurry out of the library and continue scouring the document I've been reading and when I turn the corner I come barreling into some unsuspecting stranger.

I drop my papers and I look up to see who I've run into and I'm completely mortified when I see that it is Professor Grant.

"Professor Grant I am _so_ sorry. I was engrossed in this file and I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. I apologize."

I bend down to start picking up my papers and he bends down with me and to my great relief he's smiling. "Don't worry about it Miss Pope. I like to see students doing their homework."

My eyes grow wide. _He remembered my name. I can't believe he actually remembered my name._

He hands me a stack of papers and we both slowly rise. "Thank you." I whisper, taking them from him.

"It looks like you're on to something there. I look forward to reading your defense strategy."

I'm at a loss for words so I just smile and nod at him, thankfully he doesn't seem phased.

"While I have you here we might as well make an appointment to meet, since you are my advisee."

"Um, of course. I'm free after lunch Monday through Thursday and all day Friday so whenever is most convenient for you will be all right with me."

He grins, "I'm a very busy man Miss Pope so I do appreciate your flexibility. If it's all right with you I'd like to meet tomorrow at lunchtime? I think we should get started as soon as possible."

I nod my head, "Yes, that would be fine."

"And since I'm robbing you of lunch with your friends it's only right that I provide you lunch, is there anything you particularly like?"

I shake my head, "Oh no, you don't have to."

"Nonsense Miss Pope, you're being accommodating and I appreciate that. You're going to have to sit through many a dull session with me so we might as well kick it off with a decent one."

I give him a small smile, "Okay, um, I'll eat just about anything." That's actually a huge lie; I'm a vegetarian but for some reason I've completely forgotten about that in this moment.

He grins, "I'll see you tomorrow Miss Pope and if you don't mind me saying, it was a pleasure to officially meet you. You come highly recommended and I look forward to seeing you thrive here."

I can feel my cheeks get hot and I nod my head, "Thank you Professor Grant." I have no doubt that recommendation he speaks of came directly from my advisor at Stanford, Cyrus Beene, I wonder how Professor Grant knows Cyrus? I guess that's just something I'll have to ask Cyrus later.

He walks away and I watch him go like a starstruck fangirl and when he rounds the corner I lean back against the wall. He is awfully dreamy and it seems quite unfair that he's my professor.

Sadly my phone brings me out of my daydream and I frown when I see it's my father. I begrudgingly answer my phone, "Dad. Hello."

"Hello Olivia, how is school?"

I sigh, he always gets right to the point. "It's going well Dad. I got assigned my advisor today and I think I'm going to enjoy my classes."

"That's good. I've checked on the status of your new car and it should be arriving sometime Friday afternoon."

I sigh, "Thanks Dad, I appreciate it." My father is the kind of person who thinks a new Mercedes will make up for the fact that he missed my college graduation, not to mention the majority of important events in my life thus far.

"You welcome Olivia. I need to know you're getting around safely and I didn't want you driving that old BMW across the country."

I sigh, I loved that BMW and I was extremely angry when my Dad announced that I wasn't allowed to drive it from Palo Alto to D.C. and instead he would buy me a brand new car. But it's useless to argue with my father, I've figured that out by now. "Yeah, Dad thank you.

He sighs and I just know he's looking at his watch, "Olivia, I know we set up this time to talk in advance but I really need to get back to work."

"It's fine Dad. I have a lot of work to do too."

"Thank you Olivia, goodbye."

"Goodbye" I practically whisper as I hang up the phone. I close my eyes and sigh because I feel a little guilty about being happy that he had to leave—I didn't really want to talk to him anyway.

The next afternoon after my morning classes I walk to Professor Grant's office and I hesitate for a moment before I knock on the door. I have to build up the nerve before I can actually knock. He answers after a moment, beaming at me from inside the office and ushering me in.

He looks absolutely stunning; today he's got on a black suit and a white shirt with a silver-y grey striped tie that's accented with thin cornflower blue stripes.

"Olivia, it's good to see you." He says, pulling out a chair for me to sit in and taking my bag and setting it next to the chair like the perfect gentleman.

I'm a little confused because the Fitzgerald Grant that is taking my bag and beaming at me does not seem like the same one who teaches 8:00 AM "How To Get Away With Murder".

He sits diagonally from me at the table and motions to a few bags of food on the table. It's takeout and I notice that it is from a vegetarian restaurant and before I know it, words are spilling out of my mouth. "Are you a vegetarian?"

He smiles, "I am, you are as well, am I correct?"

I shoot him a confused look, "How did you know that?"

He laughs, "One of your extracurricular activities was Project Compassion so I made an educated guess."

I ease up in my chair, "How long have you been a vegetarian?"

He grins, "Since I was twenty."

I can't help myself. I want to pry. "You just decided to?"

He laughs, "Actually I went to a Paul McCartney concert and he gave an impassioned speech about why he was a vegetarian and looking back I can truthfully say I only started it because I was desperate to be just like Paul but I kept doing it because it's become something I truly believe in."

I can't help but smile at him.

He reciprocates my grin, "How long have you been a vegetarian?"

"Hmm…I guess officially since I was eleven but on and off throughout childhood too. My Mom was a vegetarian and she would never buy meat but my Dad bought it and cooked it and I didn't really get up the courage to tell him I wasn't going to eat any more meat until I was eleven."

"Your Mom _was_ a vegetarian?" He asks, now he's prying a bit too.

"Um, yeah she died when I was nine."

He frowns, "I'm so sorry Olivia."

I shake my head, "It was a long time ago. And please call me Liv."

"Liv," He says as if he's trying it out, "I like that. And when we're not in the classroom feel free to call me Fitz."

"Fitz." I say softly, I like the way it rolls off my tongue.

I can feel my face getting flush and thankfully Fitz changes the subject. "So Liv, what kind of law do you think you want to go into?"

I bite my lip, "I'd like to be a defense attorney. I volunteered a bit for Innocence Aid and I very much enjoyed it."

He looks up at me and finishes chewing the bite of food in his mouth before he starts to laugh, "You got certified as a paralegal and spent over forty hours a week at the office, I'd hardly call that 'volunteering a bit'."

I avert my eyes and pretend to focus on the sandwich I'm eating; I'm not good at bragging about myself.

"That was actually what drew me to your resume. As you know I pick four interns to come work for my firm and well, you are the frontrunner."

I can't help but smile and I figure I should use this opportunity to pitch myself to him in my own words. "Thank you Professor Grant—I mean, Fitz—I'd really love to work for your firm. I really admire the amount of pro-bono work you do."

He smiles, "I'm glad because as an intern the majority of the work you will be doing is the pro-bono work. I'm allowed to do more pro-bono work than most because of the high value clients I also retain, unfortunately it keeps my paralegals tied up with work for those clients and they don't have time for the pro-bono work. Which is where my interns come in and although you won't get paid for your work, you will get credit and you will get a glowing recommendation from me when you graduate. I usually only keep my interns for a year but after that I usually have no problems getting them jobs at other places. Occasionally I am able to hire an intern after the first year, if he or she proves exceedingly valuable."

I'm in the middle of a large bite of my sandwich when Fitz finishes speaking and I'm a little embarrassed as I work hard to chew it quickly.

Fitz laughs and continues speaks, "Cyrus Beene tells me that you are the best student he's ever had."

I almost choke on my food as I swallow. Cyrus always told me I was good but he never said I was the best so that's a surprise to hear.

I take a quick drink of the bottled water sitting in front of me, "You know Cyrus?"

Fitz grins, "I went to Stanford too. I was a little disappointed to learn that I wasn't the best student he'd ever had."

I can feel the color drain from my face and all of a sudden I find that I'm very nervous.

He looks at me sternly for a moment and then he laughs, "I'm just messing with you Olivia."

I smile in relief and Fitz continues to talk.

"The dean for the undergraduate law program is retiring at the end of the year and I'm trying to convince Cyrus to take the job. I think he'd be much happier out here, all that sunlight in California makes him grumpy."

I laugh, "Yeah, he's the only person I know who doesn't like the weather in California."

Fitz grins, "I do miss the California weather."

"Are you originally from there?" I ask casually.

"Yeah, Santa Barbara actually."

"Oh that's awesome, it's gorgeous down there." I reply.

"Yes it is. And I won't pretend that I didn't read your file thoroughly and ask you where you're from like a creep who is trying to make conversation. Olivia Grace Pope. Originally from Brooklyn, New York but moved to Chicago, Illinois when you were ten. Attended private day schools in the United States up until the age of eleven when you were enrolled in boarding school, first at Roedean, then transferred to Surval Montreaux at age fourteen, undergrad at Stanford where you graduated as class valedictorian, and finally on to Georgetown Law."

I avert my eyes because I feel a little embarrassed.

"Your education record is very impressive Miss Pope but what I really take stock in is your glowing recommendation from Cyrus, I've never heard him speak of a student so fondly and Cyrus is extremely hard to please. He knows greatness when he sees it and he definitely sees it in you."

I finally look up at him, he's smiling at me with a slightly crooked smile and good lord is he dreamy, I just want to lean forward and run my hand through his gorgeous hair. I want to know what his mouth feels like pressed up against mine. I want to run my hands along what I'm sure are very sturdy biceps…and I really need to stop daydreaming because I'm making this very awkward.

"Um..." I try to stutter out something coherent, "thank you very much, I do appreciate your vote of confidence and I promise I won't let you down."

He smiles, "No, I don't believe you will." And he leans back in his chair so I can no longer smell the faint aroma of whatever pleasantly odorous cologne he is wearing.

"So how often are we supposed to meet?" I ask, praying it's a lot because I definitely wouldn't hate seeing him outside the classroom like this more often.

He runs a hand through his hair and I can't help but be incredibly jealous of that hand.

"Well it depends on how often you want to meet. I know some advisors require biweekly check-ins and I know others are all right with mostly e-mail correspondence. I do prefer to actually meet with my students but I leave it up to them how frequently we meet. I'll give you my card." He fishes a wallet out of his pocket and pulls out a business card. He writes a number on the back and hands it to me. "This is my office number, it will connect you to my assistant. The number on the back is my cell phone; I'd encourage you to use it because you're more likely to get ahold of me. I do text if you're all right with texting a professor. The balls in your court on that one, if you are comfortable with texting me I'd be happy to communicate that way. It also lists my work e-mail address."

I nod my head, "I'm all right with texting. Here, I'll give you my number as well so when I text you you'll already know who it's from."

I scribble my number on a piece of paper ripped from my planner and I slide it over to him.

He looks at it and grins, "Palo Alto area code."

I laugh, "Yeah I had to get a new phone when I came back to the states because my last one was a Swiss number and it was ridiculous."

He smiles and folds the paper up, then places it into the breast pocket of his shirt.

"Do you have any questions so far about your classes or anything about the school?"

I shake my head, "No, I think I'm doing all right so far."

"That's great. Well, if you ever have any questions please don't hesitate to ask."

I stand up and toss out the trash from lunch. "Thank you so much Professor Grant for taking me on as an advisee and thank you very much for lunch."

He stands up and helps me toss out the remaining trash. "It's been my pleasure Miss Pope. I look forward to seeing you on Monday." And with that he reaches out his hand and reciprocate and again, as our hands touch there's this little jolt of electricity and I pull my hand back immediately.

"I'm sorry, I must be static-y or something."

He gives me a sort of confused look but then shrugs it off, "Not a problem Miss Pope. Have a good weekend."

I grab my things and walk out of his office, "Thank you Professor Grant, you too."

And with that I bolt down the hallway and out of the building. I quickly head for the parking lot where Abby is thankfully leaning against her car and checking something on her phone.

"Hey Abby."

She looks up at me and grins; "Hey Liv, how was your meeting with Professor Dreamy Eyes?"

I roll my eyes at her, "Shut up, he was very nice and very helpful but that was it. Hey did you know he knew Cyrus?"

Abby looks as surprised as I did when I found out, "No not at all."

"Apparently Cyrus gave me a glowing recommendation."

Abby laughs, "Well he better have, you were his best student! I hope he gave me a decent one. I want that internship position. Did he tell you anything else about it?"

I nod as we get into Abby's little Lexus. "Yeah, he said that he does quite a bit of pro-bono work and since his paralegals have to stick to the high retainer clients we will mostly be doing pro-bono work."

Abby pulls out of the parking lot. "Ugh that's awesome, I have to have that internship."

I laugh, "Well I guess that means a weekend at the law library for us."

Abby groans, "Our first week of law school and we're already going to be living in the library. This does not bode well."

* * *

Hey guys! This is my second crack at a Scandal fanfic and I hope you like it! I'm having a lot of fun writing it but it requires quite a bit of research so I won't be updating it as frequently as "The Ability To Start Over". Be sure to leave me some comments and tell me what you think! (Reviews make me write faster, hint hint.) And thanks for reading!

Hugs & high fives, Hazel

P.S. All the names of the other professors and the names from Fitz's firm are all names from television attorneys. If you can guess them all I will be impressed!


	2. Chapter 2

_I have always kept an open mind, a flexibility that must go hand in hand with every form of the intelligent search for truth. _

– _Malcolm X_

* * *

Friday and Saturday go by in a blur and Abby and I have unfortunately spent most of our time at the library. That is, until Abby stands up and announces we are done for the day.

"All right everyone. It's 8 o'clock on a Saturday and we have officially been at the library for twelve hours. I realize that we need to get used to this but it's our first weekend as law school students and I also think we need to get drunk. So everyone go home, freshen up, and be at Liv's & my apartment at 9. We will provide the booze if you guys can manage to bring some snacks. Everyone down with that?"

Everyone verbalizes his or her agreement and we leave the library.

Abby and I gather our things and make our way to my car. When we arrive Abby takes a moment to admire it. God Liv, I can't believe Daddy dearest gave you a 2014 Mercedes C350. Sometimes I wish I had an absentee father."

I roll my eyes at her and proceed to get in the car.

She gets in too and reaches over to put a hand on my arm, "Hey, I'm sorry Liv I didn't mean for that to sound so crass."

I smile at her, "It's okay Abs. Your crassness is one of the reasons I like you."

She grins and I recall the day we first met. It was the very first day of undergraduate school and we were doing orientation activities and had been paired into groups of about fifteen. Abby happened to be in my group and the first activity was a game involving cups – I can't even remember what it was, I just know that I was the only one who didn't know how to play – I made some apparently silly mistake and Abby looked at me and asked, 'What alien planet did you come from?' And I just stared at her blankly and said, 'Switzerland'. She laughed hysterically and we've pretty much been inseparable ever since. We ended up discovering that we lived only a few doors away in the dorms, had quite a few classes together, and basically had the same plan for our education. Abby is also my only friend to ever meet my Dad, apart from various primary school friends. She visited me in Chicago the summer after our freshman and sophomore years at school and even she has only ever said a handful of words to my father, whom she has rather un-lovingly dubbed, 'Daddy dearest'.

Abby and I get an obscene amount of alcohol and cheap plastic cups and head home. Luckily our apartment is clean, although we really haven't even had the time to make a mess, and we change clothes and get ready for our friends to show up.

10 PM rolls around and our little group is all there, Quinn, David, Harrison, Emily, Jake, Huck, and Will. I really like all of them and I think we're all going to be good friends. The internship situation could be tricky if a few of us are selected but I don't want to think about that right now.

We've turned our kitchen table into the perfect station for a flip cup tournament – its girls versus guys with Harrison as the judge – and the girls are killing the boys.

"Good lord, where did you learn to flip cup like that?" Jake asks.

Abby and I turn to each other and start laughing hysterically.

Jake is smiling at us and shaking his head, "Never mind I don't think I want to know."

"So where are you from Jake?" Abby says, using her flirting voice.

"New York City. Brooklyn, actually."

"Hey, Liv is from Brooklyn!" Abby exclaims nudging me with her elbow.

"Oh yeah, that's crazy, where did you go to high school?" He asks.

"Actually I didn't go to high school there, see I was born there and lived there until I was ten when we moved to Chicago. But I started going to boarding school when I was eleven so I still consider Brooklyn to be home."

Jake's eyes grow wide, "Boarding school, wow."

I laugh as I watch him, "Um yeah, three years in England and four in Switzerland."

He grins at me, "You're very intimidating Olivia Pope."

I purse my lips together and I try not to smile, "I'm sorry. It's not intentional."

"No, no don't apologize. I like that you're intimidating. It's sexy."

I can feel my face getting red, and I sort of scope him out casually. He's very attractive with dark brown hair and brown eyes, he's very fit and he has sexy stubble around his mouth.

Unfortunately that's when Abby accidentally spills a pitcher of beer all over the table and I jump out of the way but some still gets on my pants. I look up and I see that Jake has some on his pants as well.

"I'm _so sorry_ guys!" Abby exclaims.

I can't help but laugh at her—she's totally wasted.

"Hey if you want to follow me to the bathroom I can help you get that out?"

He grins at me, "Yeah, sure."

I lead the way to the bathroom and run the water so it's mildly warm and grab a washcloth from the cabinet.

I hand it to Jake and our hands touch lightly but there's no spark. Suddenly I'm reminded of the spark I felt with Professor Grant. Jake isn't quite as attractive as Professor Grant but he is still very handsome and I really need to stop thinking about Professor Grant – Fitz – I even sigh when I simply _think_ about his name.

"So, um, where did you go to undergrad?" I ask as I attempt to get the beer out of my pants.

He looks up at me and smiles, "I went to UNC. You and Abby went to Stanford, right?"

I nod my head, "Did you like UNC?"

"I did. I liked North Carolina, it was completely different than Brooklyn."

I grin, "Yeah that's not surprising."

"So were you in boarding school in London?"

"I wish. I was south of London in Brighton, along the English Channel."

"Wow, what about Switzerland? The only place I've ever been in Switzerland is Geneva, were you anywhere around there?"

I grin, "I was in Montreaux, which is on the exact opposite side of Lake Geneva as the city of Geneva."

Jake grins at me, "Sorry my knowledge of geography is not the best."

I laugh, "You're doing better than most."

"You missed a spot on your shirt." I say quietly.

He leans backward to look and I reach my hands forward to help him with the stain.

"Thanks Liv." He says quietly.

I nod my head, "Yeah, no problem."

We are then interrupted by a knock at the door and I jump back.

Jake laughs, "We'll be right out."

I throw the washcloths in the hamper and Jake and I make our way out of the bathroom.

Later that night after everyone is gone, Abby and I are getting ready in the bathroom and we are talking.

"So Jake's cute." Abby says casually.

I shrug, "Yeah, he's nice."

Abby shakes her head and laughs at me. "Liv, I greatly admire your self-control."

I roll my eyes at her and we both head to bed.

We spend most of Sunday working on our defenses and other homework we've been assigned during the week and therefore Monday comes early. Sadly I don't have any interesting interaction with Fitz on Monday, Tuesday goes by quickly, and even Wednesday soars by after we turn in our defenses. I am a little grumpy that I haven't really had the chance to talk to Fitz, I don't know why, I feel ridiculous acting like this but I can't help it so I am pleasantly surprised when I am lying in bed reading and I receive a text message. I lift up my phone and I am elated when I read the name on the message 'Fitzgerald Grant'. I can't stop the grin from appearing on my face as I open it up to read the message.

_I know I said the ball was in your court in regards to texting so I hope I'm not overstepping any boundaries here. I finished reading your defense and I thought it was rude to call this late. Could you meet me tomorrow to discuss your proposal?  
Fitzgerald Grant_

I bite my lip, I was confident in my proposal when I handed it in but now I'm a little worried. I try to shake it off. I do like that he signed his whole name, probably just in case I hadn't put him in my contacts yet.

_You're not overstepping any boundaries; I appreciate your willingness to discuss my work. I am free anytime after lunch tomorrow to meet. Thank you, Liv_

Almost immediately he responds back.

_Does tomorrow at 5 o'clock work for you?_

_Absolutely. Your office?_

_Actually, if you wouldn't mind meeting me at my law firm I'd greatly appreciate it. The address is on the business card I gave you. It's not too far away from campus._

_Of course, I will be there at 5. Thank you so much Professor Grant._

_Thank you for being accommodating. I look forward to our meeting tomorrow. And remember; outside of class its just Fitz._

I can't help but grin at that last message. He looks forward to meeting with me! I won't be able to sleep now because I'm so giddy, even though that's ridiculous because I'm sure he's just being polite.

Thursday comes and I find myself staring at my watch all day practically willing it to be 5 o'clock. Finally, at four thirty I can't wait anymore. I stand up and assess myself in the mirror. I've put on a pair of white pants, a black blouse, and my favorite black and white cropped blazer. My hair is softly curled and I've accented the outfit very simply with my favorite watch and a thin pearl necklace I inherited from my mother. I've completed the outfit with a pair of smart black pumps and my favorite white leather bag. I grab my keys and I am out the door.

I arrive at his law firm less than ten minutes later and realize that I am still more than fifteen minutes early. I don't want to be a bother because I'm sure he's busy, so I wait five minutes to walk into the building.

I enter the law firm and I am immediately impressed. It's a beautiful building with gorgeous mahogany wood accents and green armchairs. Everything about it is warm and inviting and I assume that's on purpose to get potential clients feeling as comfortable as possible.

I walk up to the front desk and tell the woman sitting at it that I am here to see Fitzgerald Grant. She points me down a hallway and instructs me that Fitz's office is all the way down and on the right.

I walk down the hallway past the other offices and I finally arrive at Fitz's. All the doors are glass and every office has floor to ceiling windows in front of it so you can see everyone in their offices.

I walk by Fitz's and see that he's on the phone but before I can do anything he sees me and he's waving me into his office.

He gets up and motions for me to sit down in one of the chairs across from his desk and he covers the mouthpiece with his hand and mouths 'I'm sorry'.

I smile and shake my head; it's really no big deal.

He spends a few minutes talking and that gives me an opportunity to scope out his office. It's a large office that matches the tone of the rest of the firm, warm and comforting. There is a large window behind his desk that features an impressive view of Washington, D.C. He has his degree and several accolades hung on the wall but he also has several pictures of landscapes—I think they're Hawaii. On his desk I spot a picture of him with an older woman I assume is his mother, one of him and several guys on what I assume was some sort of guys trip to Vegas, and one more that I'm surprised to see features him and Cyrus.

I'm glad there are no pictures of women around here. I feel silly thinking that but I can't help it. I know he's not married and I'm hoping this means that he doesn't have a significant other in his life either.

He hangs up the phone and focuses his attention on me. "I apologize for that. Gotta keep the clients happy."

I smile, "No it was no problem. I'm early so I apologize for that."

He grins, "What do you think of the office?"

"It's gorgeous. Very large, I didn't expect it to be quite so large."

"We're actually in the process of expanding to the floor above us. Should be an exciting expansion. Room for lots of new employees."

I'm not sure if he's hinting at anything here but I really hope he is.

He abruptly claps his hands together and reaches below his desk to grab something—it's my paper. He then sets it on the desk in front of me.

From what I can see there are no marks on it so I don't know whether to be nervous or happy.

"You know every person in that class gave me a cookie cutter defense with an added twist. There were lots of proposals suggesting I defend it like an accident or as an insanity case. There were lots of proposals suggesting I chalk it up to PTSD. I did find your friend Abby—is that her name?—I did find her proposal about reasonable mistake fairly interesting. But yours Miss Pope was the only proposal I received that suggested the proper defense was simply proving that Mr. Burton didn't commit the crime."

I nod my head; I'm not really sure how he wants me to respond.

"I'd like you to explain your proposal to me. Not this detailed obviously but I want to hear it straight from your mouth."

He leans back in his chair and puts his hands behind his head.

I somehow manage to close my mouth and when I attempt to speak I'm shocked that words actually come out.

"I proposed we defend him as innocent because I believe he is innocent. The accused, James Burton, an ex Army Ranger who suffered major PTSD due to a traumatic brain injury he suffered in Iraq. I get why they would think he did it. There have been cases of soldiers coming home and hurting those they love because they can't adapt and because it's hard to assess what can become a trigger to a person with PTSD, but I don't believe this is one of them. I think that even though he was having trouble controlling his emotions and controlling his outbursts, I do not believe the escalation to murder is something that was plausible. That extreme of an escalation doesn't make sense, although they'd fought before and he admitted to breaking a few things around the house, he'd never laid a hand on her. That type of escalation just doesn't make sense. I believe in order to prove Mr. Burton innocent we have to find the real killer. Sophie Williams was for all accounts a completely normal person. She was the kind of person everyone liked, the kind of person who would support her boyfriend through anything. But I think that she may have had something to hide, something maybe from before she met Mr. Burton. Someone was very angry with her; it takes a lot of rage to stab someone twelve times. I think the real murderer is still out there and I think we need to find him."

Fitz is still staring at me as he leans forward on his desk. "I agree Miss Pope."

I let out a deep breath I wasn't even aware I was holding in.

"I haven't chosen the three other students yet but I am one hundred percent positive that I want you working for me. So, Miss Pope, I am officially extending to you an invitation to work for me, are you interested?"

My eyes grow wide, "Absolutely!" I exclaim, "Thank you so much Professor Grant, I promise I'll work harder than anyone."

He grins, "I have no doubts about that. Would you like to see your office?"

"Yes, please!"

He laughs and gets up out of his chair. He opens the door to his office and like a gentleman, he ushers me out first. We walk straight across the hall to a large office with four desks in it.

"This will be your office, you'll be sharing it with the three other students I choose from class. I'll have decided who those three will be by tomorrow afternoon. I let you all choose your hours but in order to get credit from the university you have to log at least twenty hours a week. You're welcome to do more than that obviously, but twenty is the minimum. I just ask that once you figure out your hours you give them to me so I know when you'll be in the office and can have work ready for you."

"Well, I only have class Monday through Thursday and I am done before lunch so what about 1 PM to 5 PM Monday through Thursday and 8 to 5 on Friday?"

Fitz grins, "You're very eager. I like that."

I can feel my face get flush.

"Well, I suppose I should let you get back to your studies. Thank you for stopping by Olivia and I look forward to working this case with you." He says as he reaches out to shake my hand.

I take his hand in mine and I swear that spark is still there, "Thank you Fitz. I'm looking forward to it as well."

I arrive home and Abby is sitting on the sofa flipping through channels on the tv when she hears me walk in.

"Hey Liv, where have you been? I'm starving, lets go get some dinner?"

She then turns around to look at me. "Whoa, you're not so much business cas as business fab! Where have you been."

I can't help it when I start jumping up and down where I stand. "I got the internship!" I exclaim excitedly.

Abby jumps up off the sofa and hugs me. "Oh my god Liv congratulations!"

I hug her back and then we go sit down on the sofa.

"So, did he happen to mention who else he picked?" She inquires casually.

I laugh, "He said that he hasn't picked yet but the other three will know by tomorrow. But he did mention you by name when he was telling me that. He said he found your theory very interesting so hopefully that means he'll pick you too!"

Abby squeals, "Ahh you mean it? You're not just trying to placate me?"

I laugh, "Absolutely not."

She grins, "Oh my god Liv us working together at Cabot, Rabb & Hotchner, it's going to be so great! And talk about the amazing boost to our resumes!"

I grin, she's totally right. This internship could be the start of big things for us.

* * *

Hey guys! I'm SO sorry this took me so long to post! Work has been crazy and then I ended up watching my nieces for the weekend, and well, my nieces take priority over everything! I should be able to post another chapter by the end of the week, my schedule is going to lighten up soon so I should have more time to write! In the meantime, follow me on twitter hazelblye and on tumblr .com-the links to both are on my bio page-I usually talk about the stories and mention when I'm going to update. Also, if you haven't read my other story, "The Ability To Start Over", please give it a try! And also please leave some reviews because I loooveee them!

Hugs & high fives, Hazel


	3. Chapter 3

_The seasons of transformation are upon us. _

_– Michael Teal_

* * *

It's Friday morning and I planned to sleep in a little bit but that plan is ruined when Abby bursts into my room around 8:15.

"Liv Liv Liv, I'm freaking out!" She exclaims as she jumps on my bed.

I just groan until she shakes me, "Come on Liv wake up! I've been up since 6 because I'm so anxious about this internship. It's so not fair Grant told you early." She says pouting.

I turn around to face her and sigh, "So this is my punishment, I get to wait with you?"

She grins wickedly, "Yes, you're the one who told me we would know by this afternoon you are going to wait anxiously with me!"

And with that she grabs my tv remote and flips it on to find something she wants to watch.

"So he told you he would let the others he picked know by this afternoon right?"

I yawn, "Yeah that's what he said."

"Well what do you think afternoon means? Like lunchtime? But maybe he eats lunch late so that could mean 1 or he could eat lunch early so maybe he means like 11. Liv I'm freaking out!"

I roll my eyes and sit up. "Abby, I'm sure you'll know in a couple hours. Just relax."

Now she rolls her eyes at me, "Easy for you to say, Grant's so impressed with you he's practically offered you a full-time position at his firm."

"Oh my god Abby, shut up. Let's go get some breakfast so you can think about something else."

She nods her head in agreement and we both get up and head out to the kitchen.

We make ourselves some pancakes for breakfast and I convince her that we should start on our other homework.

By 11:30 she's freaking out a little bit. "Liv, what if he doesn't pick me?"

I look up from my pile of books and sigh, "Abby, chill out he's going to pick you."

She stands up, "But what if he doesn't? Then I'm just going to be pacing around our kitchen all day waiting for an e-mail that's never going to come!"

"Oh, Abby don't worry that would never happen. I'm sure we'd find out who got the positions before that happened."

She glares at me and I can't help but stifle a laugh. "Sorry, I couldn't help myself. But seriously Abby I'm sure you'll get it."

As if on cue her e-mail dings and she races back to the table. She scans the e-mail for a minute and then starts jumping up and down. "I GOT IT I GOT IT!" She's screaming.

I join her in her celebration and we both start dancing around the kitchen.

"Wait, wait, we need music!" She exclaims as she leans over her computer and switches on one of our favorite songs and one that seems perfectly suited to this moment in time, "Burn" by Ellie Goulding.

We are interrupted when my phone starts to ring. I look down and see that it's Jake. Abby turns the volume down and I pick it up and put it on speakerphone.

"Hey Jake, what's up?" I ask casually.

"Hey Liv, I uh, sorry I just wanted to call and say that Grant picked me for one of the intern positions."

I smile, "That's great Jake! Abby and I will be joining you!"

"That's awesome!" He replies. "I mean, that's kind of why I called you. I don't want you to think I was bragging about being picked or anything I just figured if I got picked then you were definitely picked so I thought I'd call."

I laugh as he stutters out his thought. "Don't worry, I didn't think you were bragging."

All of a sudden Abby gets a text and picks up her phone. "David is number four!" She mouths.

"So do you know who got the last spot?" Jake asks.

"Yeah, actually we just figured that out. It's David."

Jake laughs, "Yeah that makes sense since he's Grant's other advisee."

There's a pause in the conversation like we both don't really know what to say.

Thankfully Jake speaks first. "Well, I'm glad I'll get to work with you. Maybe we can go out tonight or tomorrow to celebrate?"

"Um, yeah that sounds really good. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye Liv."

"Bye Jake."

When I hang up the phone Abby is staring at me with crazy eyes.

"What?" I ask, attempting to be casual.

She rolls her eyes at me, "He likes you! And he's hot. You should hit that."

I blush and turn away from her. "Abby I'm not interested in him like that. Plus we just got this internship, we are not going to have any time for dating."

Abby laughs and places her hand on my shoulder, "Oh my dear sweet innocent Livia, I wasn't talking about dating."

I roll my eyes at her and hit the volume button on her computer so I can just keep dancing.

Abby and I spend Friday doing our homework but we decide to go out for drinks on Saturday with some of the gang. Luckily the others aren't too sore about not being picked—there are hundreds of internship opportunities in DC—so we all have a good night. Around 12 I find that I'm pretty drunk so I get a glass of water and find a table in the back corner.

Suddenly I see Jake walking over to me.

"Hey Liv!" He says, waving to me and then hurrying over. He sits next to me and he's got a big grin on his face.

I shoot him a confused look, "Hey Jake."

He just keeps grinning at me, "I've been looking for you."

I nod my head, "Well, you found me."

He laughs, "Yeah I did. I…um…I just wanted to tell you that you look beautiful tonight. Actually you look beautiful all the time."

I can't help it when I start to laugh. Jake is looking at me with total confusion and I cover my mouth with my hand. "I'm so sorry, I'm not laughing at what you said, just the situation. You know, boy hits on girl in bar, cheesy things happen. Sorry, I hate rom-coms and Abby is always making me watch them.

Thankfully he laughs, "Well, that is an unexpected reaction but I guess I'll take it. Uh, do you want to get out of here?"

I look over at Abby who is dancing the night away with both Harrison and Will and I look back at Jake. "Yeah, sure. Want to go to my apartment?"

He nods his head, "Yeah definitely." I gather my things and head over to Abby and whisper that I am heading home. And Abby, just being Abby, decides to scream, "Get it girl!" And hugs me as I walk out the door.

Our apartment is just around the block so we walk back there in slightly awkward silence.

We get to my apartment and I let us in. I toss my clutch on the kitchen table and grab Jake's hand and lead him into the living room.

I don't say anything, honestly I wouldn't know what to say even if I wanted to speak, I just fall backward onto the sofa and pull Jake with me. Our lips crash together and we just lie there kissing for a few minutes until Jake pulls back.

"Whoa Liv, we're making out?"

I laugh, "Well we _were_."

He smiles and runs a hand through my hair. "Is this okay?"

I roll my eyes, "Yes. It's okay." And I start to kiss him again before I pull back dramatically. "We're not having sex. Just thought I should clarify that in case you thought this was going to go any farther than us making out."

Jake looks at me as if he's a little confused by my outburst but nods his head. "Yeah, of course Liv."

We continue making out for a little while. It's nice. Jake is a good kisser but I'm not sure I feel anything with him.

I've only ever had one boyfriend. Well, I guess I've had two if you count Graham Eastman when I was six. But the only real boyfriend I ever had was a boy named Gio I met when I was 14 and moved to Switzerland. He was from Valencia, Spain and he went to my school's boy's school counterpart.

We just kiss on the sofa until Abby bursts into the apartment and I jump up. Of course she knows what was going on.

"Hey Liv, hey Jake, enjoying some hanky panky on the sofa?" She says laughing.

I roll my eyes. "Go to bed Abby."

She tosses her purse across the room. "I do need to go to bed. I'm wasted." And with that she makes her way into the bathroom.

I look over at Jake and we both burst out laughing. After I catch my breath I reach my hand down and help Jake stand up.

"I don't do sleepovers either. I like to play using middle school rules."

He laughs, "You made out like that as a middle schooler?"

I roll my eyes, "You know what I mean."

He grins, "Yeah. Well, thanks for having me over. It was very nice. Maybe we can do it again sometime?"

I shrug my shoulders, "Eh, maybe."

He feigns offense, "Ouch. You wound me Liv." He says as he places his hand over his chest in a dramatic gesture.

We walk over to the front door and he leans in to kiss me lightly on the cheek. "Goodnight Liv."

I smile, "Goodnight Jake."

I see him out and I head back into the apartment and into my bedroom to find Abby sitting on my bed. Her eyes are wide, "Olivia Grace Pope, I never would have expected you to be the one to christen our new sofa!"

I roll my eyes and sit next to Abby on my bed. "We just made out. I'm not having sex with him. He's nice but I don't know if I feel a connection with him."

Abby rolls her eyes, "Liv, real life doesn't always work like that. You have to work to have a connection with someone. He's a good guy and I think you should give him a chance."

I sigh, "You're right. I will give him a chance but I'm not promising anything and I'm definitely not going to sleep with him until I do feel something."

She smiles at me, "That's good Liv. You have to give yourself a chance to feel something. And I know I give you a lot of grief for it, but I'm proud of you for sticking to your guns about this sex thing. I really admire that about you."

I lean in and hug her. I can't help but laugh because she reeks of booze. I lean back and stand up. "Thanks. I love you boozy, now go to bed."

She gets up and heads out of my room, "Goodnight Liv. Love you too."

Sunday goes by quickly, we just focus on studying and plan our outfits for our first day at our internships.

Monday morning goes by quickly and Abby and I wolf down our lunches so we can go back to the apartment and get ready.

Abby has chosen to wear a long black pencil skirt, classic black Manolo Mary Janes, a cobalt blue blouse, her outfit is accented with silver jewelry and her long red hair is perfectly straightened.

I have chosen to wear a champagne colored pantsuit with a white blouse, I've accessorized with a thick strand of pearls and two thin ones I inherited from my Mom, I'm wearing a pair of white pumps and I've styled my hair the same way Abby has, perfectly straight.

We leave the house and head to the firm. Abby and I are the first two there and the girl at the front desk instructs us to wait there for Fitz. Jake and David show up together a few minutes after us and they sit down with us.

I haven't talked to Jake since I sent him home on Saturday night so I blush a little when I see him.

He sees me and immediately walks over and sits next to me. "Hey Liv, how are you?"

I smile, "I'm doing well Jake, how are you?"

"Nervous." He says.

"Me too." I respond with a laugh, but I'm not really nervous, I'm more excited. But I also remember that Abby is the only one who knows I've already been to the office so I should probably act like this is all new to me.

It's then when out of the corner of my eye I spot Fitz walking down the hallway and as much as I try to hide it, I know Jake sees my eyes light up.

Fitz is grinning as he walks toward us. We all stand up to greet him. "Ah, my interns!" He says enthusiastically. "Welcome to Cabot, Rabb, and Hotchner and please follow me."

Abby is the first to jump in line behind him; I know she's beyond excited to be here. We all follow him as he leads us to our offices. They are slightly different from when I saw them, basically in that when I was here last time the desks were empty and now there are papers stacked high on each desk and new filing cabinets have appeared.

"All right, this will be your office for the year. You should have everything you need in here. My paralegals have brought in case law that might help you and your computers all have access to LexusNexus. But feel free to use our little mini law library. It's down the hall, you can work in there if you wish or you can work in here. I gave you the more pertinent witness statements and reports about this case to read when you made your proposals but I would like you to go through everything. I've printed out copies of everything and they are on your desk. You can take today to read them, if you don't finish them feel free to take them home but do remember to keep them to yourselves. My office is across the hall; if you need anything please don't be afraid to ask me, or anyone in the office for that matter. I do need all of your schedules by this afternoon. You all now have e-mail addresses with the firm, the long is information is on your desks, so just log onto them and shoot me your schedules before you leave today. I'll be in tomorrow to discuss the case with you all so please try to get through as much as possible today."

Just as he is about to walk out of the office he pops his head back in, "Oh Olivia could I see you in my office for a moment?" He ducks his head out before I can respond and I turn to look at Abby before I follow him and her eyes are wide with excitement. She shrugs and motions me out the door. I glance at Jake before I walk out of the office and he looks a little annoyed but I just ignore it and I head over to Fitz's office.

I smile at him when I walk in and he smiles back. I have to steady myself on a chair because his smile is so gorgeous that I find myself going weak in the knees.

"Liv, how are you?" He asks kindly.

"I'm doing very well, excited to be here. How are you?"

He grins, "Excellent, I'm excited you're here too."

I don't even know how to respond, I just smile at him.

"So I have a special assignment for you, once you're done reading the case file that is, but I recently came into some classified information from a friend of mine at the Bureau and she may have indicated that Sophie Williams may have a connection to a case she has been working on."

"Wait a minute, by the 'Bureau' do you mean the FBI?" I ask, totally intrigued.

He nods his yes, "Yes, that Bureau. Agent Jareau can only meet tomorrow and I'm totally swamped but she has agreed to meet with you, that is if you're up for it?"

My mouth drops open, "Oh my gosh yes of course I'm up for it!" I exclaim.

He grins and grabs a file from his desk. "I figured. Here's all the information. You can let the others know about the meeting if you wish but the information I'm giving you is for your eyes only until we get some kind of confirmation but I trust you."

I can't keep my mouth shut, "Why do you trust me? I mean, I appreciate it, but you don't really know me."

He shrugs, "Call it a gut feeling. I don't think you'll let me down."

I smile and take the file from him. "Thank you. I'll try my hardest not to."

I walk back to our office and Jake practically jumps up from his chair. "What did he want?" He pries.

I sit down at my desk and Jake follows me over, sitting on the edge. I shrug, "Not much, he just had some advisee stuff I asked for last week that he was getting to me."

Jake frowns but I think he believes me. I take one of the witness statements off my desk so I can start reading but Jake is still sitting there.

"So I was wondering if maybe I could take you out to dinner on Friday night?"

I smile politely, "Um, yeah that sounds good."

He grins, "Awesome." And thankfully he goes back to his own desk to work.

At five we are all getting ready to head home for the night when I get an e-mail from Fitz asking me to come into his office.

He has taken his tie off and has the top button of his dress shirt unbuttoned and he looks so smoking hot, there are literally no better words to describe him than smoking hot because that's what he is.

"I confirmed your meeting with JJ tomorrow. Agent Jennifer Jareau is her name, she goes by JJ, I've written the address of your meet location and her contact information down here. Don't be nervous Liv, you'll do great."

I take the paper from him and I can't stop myself from smiling, "Thank you. I really hope so."

"Are you heading home for the night?" I ask him.

He shakes his head, "No, I've got a bit more work to do here but have a good night."

"Thanks. Don't work too hard."

He flashes that gorgeous smile at me once again, "I'll try. Don't study too hard."

"I'll try." I say as I walk out the door.

Abby and I head home and she somehow manages to wait until we've walked in the door of our apartment to ask me what Fitz gave me earlier.

"So what the heck did he want to talk to you about? Come on Liv, you can't leave me hanging like that?" She exclaims as she starts to raid the refrigerator for dinner.

"I can't give you details until I confirm them tomorrow and you have to keep this to yourself, promise?"

Abby turns around to look at me and places her hand over her heart. "I swear on George Clooney."

I laugh, that's how we know the other is dead serious. We found out early on in our friendship that we were both huge fans of George Clooney.

"Okay, I'm meeting with an FBI agent tomorrow to ask her about some leads Fitz has on the case."

Abby slams her palm against the kitchen table. "Are you fucking serious?! That is amazing! Oh my god this case is getting better by the minute!"

I laugh, "Don't tell anyone I told you. I'm supposed to get the information and go through it with Fitz before we decide if it's valid or not."

Abby turns back to the refrigerator and starts rummaging around again. I head over to the cabinets and start to do the same.

"So have you figured out Fitz's deal with you yet?"

I pause, "What do you mean his 'deal' with me?"

"Oh come on, like you haven't noticed?"

I turn around so I can see her, "Um, what the hell are you talking about?"

She turns around with a stack of food and sets it down on the table before she gives me a big, dramatic eye roll.

"Come on Liv, don't be naïve. I get that on paper you're Mary freakin' Poppins but", she pauses when I give her a confused look, "you know Mary Poppins, 'practically perfect in every way'."

I can't help myself when I burst out laughing but Abby just continues to talk. "But David is almost as perfect on paper as you and Fitz is not taking the same time to help him. I mean the guy told you personally that you got the internship spot. He's giving you special assignments and we've only been on the job one day. Even in class I catch him staring at you. Liv, the man is doing everything but drooling over you, he wants you."

I don't even know how to respond so I just stand there for a few moments. I feel like I should just deny all of this vehemently but I can't bring myself to do it. Instead I just sit down at the table and lay my head down on it.

"Abby you can't say that."

She laughs, "Why? It's true!"

I groan, "No Abby it can't be. He is so dreamy and I am so attracted to him and you have to stop getting my hopes up like that because it's never going to happen."

She sits down beside me. "Whoa Liv, you actually really like him?"

I prop my head up with my hand. "He's so nice to me and encouraging and he's so smart and I hate to sound shallow but I have to say it again, he is so damn dreamy!"

Abby laughs, "Liv, I'm not trying to get your hopes up. I legitimately believe he's into you."

I sigh, "Even if he was there's really nothing I can do about it, I mean he's our teacher and he's my advisor. That would be something that could get him fired and me kicked out of school and I can't risk that."

Abby frowns, "Yeah, that's true. Damn. Well…um…Jake seems to be pretty smitten with you?"

I sigh, "Yeah, he's nice. He asked me to dinner on Friday."

"That's great Liv! You need to go on a date, just focus on that and you'll be fine!"

I get up and grab the food she's set out on the table.

"I hope so. It would be great to not feel so nervous around Fitz."

Abby laughs, "You'll get over that eventually."

The next day I find I'm pretty nervous. My morning classes go by quickly and my one o'clock meeting with Agent Jareau is getting closer and closer. I dress in my work clothes and I just pick at my lunch because I'm getting anxious. A little before I'm going to leave I get a text from Fitz.

_Good luck this afternoon. Don't be nervous, JJ is great and so are you._

I practically melt when I read it and quickly send him a quick 'thank you' text and head out.

I get to the little coffee shop where I'm meeting this agent and I arrive about ten minutes early so I get a table myself. Fitz sent me an e-mail describing the agent I'm meeting but I hope she knows she's looking for me as well because there are a lot of blonde women here. But then I see a professional looking woman walk into the café. She grabs a coffee quickly and then heads in my direction. I'm pretty sure she's the one I'm meeting with and thankfully she must know I'm the one she's meeting because she heads right over to me.

She sits down across from me and she reaches over to shake my hand. "I'm Jennifer Jareau, you can call me JJ though. You must be Olivia?"

I smile and shake her hand, "Yes, you can call me Liv, it's very nice to meet you."

She smiles at me and pulls a file out of her bag. "This is everything I found." She lowers her voice, "She is definitely not with the Bureau but we are almost positive she is or was with a Homeland Security agency. When we ran her though facial recognition software we got several hits but nothing connected to anything within the Bureau. But from the pattern we've deduced that she's definitely not just a civilian."

There's a lump in my throat but somehow I manage to speak in a very soft voice, "So, you're telling me you think she's CIA?"

JJ nods her head slowly confirming my suspicions and I take a deep breath because this case just got a lot more complicated.

* * *

HEY GUYS! I'm so sorry I've been crap at updating my stories! I have two jobs and my second one is kind of a fun one and I've been much busier than I originally anticipated and I'm really having a lot of fun just going with it and enjoying myself! Anyway, I've been traveling a lot and it's tough to lug my laptop everywhere. Also, when I do have my computer I tend to outline this story because I keep getting all these crazy ideas and then I end up rewriting and well let's just say it's getting complicated! But I have not and I will not forget about it! I'm having way too much fun with it and I actually have a lot of it written, the issue is piecing it together and making it flow! So thanks for sticking with me! OH and The Ability To Start Over will be updated either later tonight or tomorrow morning! Thanks so much for reading and PLEASE leave me some nice comments because it totally fuels my writing fire! XOXO

Hugs & high fives, Hazel

(P.S. Any CM fans like JJ's little cameo? She's my fave so I figured if Liv was going to meet someone from the FBI it was going to be her!)


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